Mendelsohn: It's A Year Of Transition

See Also: 'Go to Hell' Episode Guide

No news on Sara, but big news for the rest of the cast of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

Fans are going to have to wait for the season premiere of CSI on September 27 to find out whether Sara is rescued. However, although Sara's fate remains unknown, executive producers Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar were more open about what will happen with the rest of the team in season eight. "It's a year of transition on CSI," Mendelsohn told TV Guide. "A year of people growing."

A story arc for Gil Grissom (William Petersen) involves bugs, specifically bees. In episode three, "Go to Hell", Grissom finds a beehive and takes it back to the lab to study. "He's trying to figure out why honeybees are dying around the world," Mendelsohn explained. "It's his science experiment for the year."

Grissom won't be spending all of his time with bugs. On November 1, CSI will be doing a crossover with Without a Trace. WAT's Jack Malone (Anthony LaPaglia) will spend some time in the Las Vegas crime lab with Grissom. Shankar described the crossover as "an intense, action-packed case that goes from Vegas to L.A. to maybe south of the border."

Season eight will bring changes for other characters as well. Nick Stokes (George Eads) is going to experience stress as he steps up in the lab, becoming more of a leader. "The question always is: Grissom is the supervisor, but who's the supervisor-in-waiting?" Mendelsohn said. Nick's friendship with Warrick Brown (Gary Dourdan) will be tested at a time when both men have things on their mind. While Nick deals with the pressure of being a leader, Warrick's marriage will continue to have problems and he will be forced to deal with some old Vegas mobsters. "Bad things can happen when you get involved with bad people," Shankar explained. This story arc will feature an episode directed by William Friedkin, who previously worked with Petersen on the movie To Live and Die in L.A..

The death of Catherine Willow's (Marg Helgenberger) father, Sam Braun (Scott Wilson), in season seven will lead her to contemplate her own life. Braun had been working on a casino project when he died, and Catherine will find herself getting involved. While Shankar did not say whether the effect would be positive or negative, he did say that the situation is "going to lead to some substantial, potentially career-altering decisions."

The article can be found in next week's edition of TV Guide. Thanks to gsr4ever and ricker 23 from Your Tax Dollars At Work.

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